Just got back a few hours ago from my shot visit to Hungary. I had a brilliant time there!!! I first went to Hungary 3 years ago, and was taken completely by surprise by the turnout of fans -- I was expecting, at best, a halfway decent crowd, and instead I got my biggest crowds ever!!!! I was worried that I'd be disappointed second time round, that the first visit was a freak and that interest in me would have dipped. My worries increased when I learnt that Saturday was a "swap" or "switch" day -- next Thursday is a bank holiday, and in Hungary, when that happens, they make everyone treat the Saturday before as a regular working day, so people with jobs go to work, and children go to school!!!! I felt disaster might be on the cards!!

But it wasn't!! I did my first event in a town called Kecskemet on Friday and signed without a pause for two and a half hours! I stayed in a lovely hotel, the Kempinski, and rose bright and early on Saturday. The day started with a Q&A session at the Book Festival. The room wasn't full when we started, which I took as a bad omen, but more fans came as the session progressed and we had a very good crowd by the end. I enjoyed the Q&A, especially when the fans started chipping in with their own questions. I moved straight from the event to the signing table, and didn't draw breath for the next two and a half hours, signing loads of books, scowling or smiling for loads of photos, answering questions whenever possible, and basically having a whale of a time!!

I had a brief break after the first session, and my bodyguards Csilla and Gabor treated me to a short car tour of Budapest. Then we went to a new, massive mall, where I did two signing sessions back-to-back in different stores. Between the pair, I was signing for almost five hours straight!! The only break I had was when I moved from one store to another -- trailed by a group of fans who had been waiting in line at the first store!!! I was very impressed with how smoothly and efficiently it all went -- it could have been a recipe for disaster in other hands, but everything proceeded without even a blip. At the end of the day I was very tired but very happy, and retired to my hotel to watch a film and chow down on some yummy room service!

I rose early again on Sunday morning and reported to the Book Festival for another signing session. Because I had more time today, I was able to take things at a more relaxed pace, and put messages in more than one book per person. As those who've been to my events in the past know, I'm always happy to sign for fans, and try to give as much value for money as I can. When pushed, I work swiftly and mechanically, but when time's on my side, I like to use it and give fans as much of it as I can -- I don't think "Yippee -- this is my chance to finish early!!" So I ended up signing for 3 hours, and after a nice lunch, I flew back to London, delighted with how everything went. I especially liked the fact that lots of fans came to more than one of my signing sessions -- you know you're doing something right when you get repeat customers!!!!!

Hungary is definitely high on my list of places I love to visit on a book tour, and hopefully I'll get to return again in the near future. I also hope to come on a holiday soon, or maybe combine work with pleasure -- I love what I've seen of the place, and would like to see more. But for the time being I'll gladly settle for having enjoyed another fabulous signing trip. Many thanks to everyone who turned up to make it such a great couple of days. Thanks also to everyone at Mora who worked so hard to make my job so easy. And extra special thanks to Csilla and Gabor -- bodyguards, guides and friends par excellence!!!!